40 Percent of the One Percent of Russian Defendants Initially Found Not Guilty Now Being Convicted on Appeal, Lawyers Group Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Jan. 24 – Under Putin, Russian courts have found defendants not guilty in less than one percent of all cases; but apparently that is too many for the Kremlin. Prosecutors are now securing convictions in 40 percent of those found not guilty by the courts in the first instance, Svetlana Volodina says.

            The president of the Federal Chamber of Lawyers says that only a few defendants succeed in not being convicted the first time around; but court officials are unhappy anyone is and are appealing not guilty findings to lower the percentage of not guilty verdicts still further (versia.ru/pochemu-poslovica-ot-tyurmy-ne-zarekajsya-krepko-ukorenilas-v-nashix-sudax).

            Volodina says that this approach by the judicial authorities follows the same line they pursue in the original trials. There, she says, nearly three out of four defense lawyers say they have been asked by prosecutors and judges to encourage their clients to plead guilty rather than mount a defense.